The American Association of Community Colleges Names New CEO

Walter G. Bumphus, chair of the Department of Educational Administration at the University of Texas at Austin’s College of Education, and professor in the university’s Community College Leadership Program, where he also earned his doctorate, has been named the next president and CEO of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). AACC is a national organization of more than 1,200 accredited two-year, associate degree-granting colleges. In addition to serving in leadership roles in Texas, Bumphus has served as president, CEO, chancellor, or dean at community colleges in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Maryland. He began his career as director of minority affairs at Murray State University (KY). Bumphus succeeds George Boggs, who will retire Dec. 31, 2010.

Virginia’s SIA Participants Recap Lessons Learned

Roanoke City Public Schools (RCPS) adult education program recently revealed lessons it learned from participating in OVAE's Standards-in-Action (SIA) project. Prince William County and RCPS adult education programs worked with the SIA team to integrate English language learning (ELL) content standards into adult education curriculum following SIA procedures. For example, participants indicated that standards should be integrated and that, to help students, teachers need to understand all levels of content standards, and not just the standards for the levels they are teaching. RCPS also learned the value of a “critical friends” learning community of teachers to exchange ideas on how to improve instructional quality. Virginia was one of five states chosen to participate in SIA. The project was supported with state leadership funds available under the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA).

National Council for Agricultural Education and National Association of Agricultural Educators Recognized

The National Council for Agricultural Education and the National Association of Agricultural Educators have been named to the 2010 Associations Advance America Honor Roll, a national awards competition sponsored by the American Society of Association Executives and the Center for Association Leadership, Washington, D.C. The groups received the award for their National Teach Ag Campaign, a multi-faceted effort to raise awareness of the need for agricultural educators in the United States. The Teach Ag Campaign includes National Teach Ag Day, which took place on Feb. 25 this year, an informational video, a grant program, a collegiate contest, involvement in a variety of youth career fairs, and development of materials for teachers and other agricultural education advocates to use when introducing students to agriculture as a career opportunity. The Teach Ag Campaign also collects contact information for persons interested in becoming agricultural educators and supports them through regular contact and a variety of social media networks.

NRCCTE Report on Secondary CTE Professional Development

The National Research Center for Career and Technical Education (NRCCTE) has released a new consolidated report of findings about to what secondary school CTE teachers need to learn to prepare their students for college and careers. The five studies and areas discussed in the report, Professional Development for Secondary Career and Technical Education: Implications for Change, include two studies on curriculum integration of academic knowledge into CTE instruction (Math-in-CTE; and Authentic Literacy in CTE Projects); the use of technical skills assessment data to improve instruction (Professional Development in Use of Assessment Data); an effort to improve enrollment and retention of students in non-traditional CTE programs (Technical Assistance Academy); and the Alternative Licensure CTE Induction Model. The NRCCTE is supported by a grant from OVAE.